Houston’s (Lightened-Up) Kale Salad with Peanut Vinaigrette is satisfying, made with a combo of grilled chicken, kale, cabbage, carrots, peanuts, scallions, cilantro and mint tossed in a light peanut-sesame dressing.
Houston’s Grilled Chicken Kale Salad
Houston’s Grilled Chicken Kale SaladKale Salad is perfect for fall, my two favorites are this Roasted Sweet Potato Kale Salad, and this Harvest Kale Salad, this peanut version is a great new addition!
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During my college years at the University of Maryland, my sister Cyndi and I waited tables at a restaurant. It was called Houston’s (now Woodmont Grill), and it so fun to share some their recipes here on Skinnytaste.
I shared the this Houston’s Couscous recipe and the ever-popular Houston’s Grilled Chicken Salad and today I’m excited to share their Kale Salad with Peanut Vinaigrette.
This recipe is another serious crowd pleaser. My sister Lori brought this salad to her book club once, and literally everyone asked for the recipe. And trust me, once you try this dish you’ll totally understand why.
There is just something so satisfying about this earthy combo; kale, cabbage, carrots, peanuts, scallions, cilantro and mint tossed in a light peanut-sesame dressing. To make it complete meal, I added some grilled chicken. Enjoy!
More chicken salad recipes:
- Rosemary Chicken Salad with Avocado and Bacon
- Grilled Chicken Salad with Strawberries and Spinach
- Halal Food Cart Style Chicken Salad with White Sauce
- Chicken Salad with Lemon and Dill
- BBQ Chicken Salad
Houston’s (Lightened-Up) Kale Salad with Peanut Vinaigrette
Ingredients
For Peanut Vinaigrette:
- 2 tablespoons peanut oil
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon reduced sodium soy sauce, or gf soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons raw honey
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
For chicken:
- ½ pound boneless, skinless chicken breast
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
For the salad:
- 1 small bunch kale leaves, ribs and stems removed, finely chopped (about 4 generous cups)
- 1 cup finely chopped green cabbage
- ½ cup shredded carrots
- ¼ cup chopped fresh mint
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 2 small scallions, chopped
- 1 ½ tablespoons chopped roasted, salted peanuts
Instructions
For dressing:
- In a small bowl, combine vinaigrette ingredients.
- Whisk to combine and set aside.
For chicken:
- Preheat outdoor grill or grill pan over medium-high heat.
- Place chicken between a piece of plastic wrap or parchment and pound to an even thickness.
- Season with ¼ teaspoon salt and pepper, to taste.
- Grill for 5-6 minutes, turn and grill for an additional 5-6 minutes more, or until chicken is cooked through.
- Allow chicken to rest for 5 minutes, then slice thin.
For salad:
- In a large bowl, combine salad ingredients from kale to scallions.
- Top each with dressing, toss to evenly combine.
- Divide salad evenly on 2 plates or bowls, top each with chicken and peanuts and serve.
Last Step:
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Photo Credit: Jess Larson
Delicious, filling, and simple to make! I used canola oil as I didn’t have peanut, and had to skip the cilantro because it turned out I was out. 🙁 Doubled the recipe so I’d have leftovers, and can’t wait to try it tonight WITH cilantro–it can only be more delicious!
This was great on a hot summer night! The personal points link shows as “Houston’s couscous salad,” though, when I try to track it in the WW app. Thank you for providing those links!
Fixed, thank you! 🙂
I subbed cashews for the peanuts, and used some shredded chicken I had in the fridge from a marathon IP session, and it was DELICIOUS. Going to make it for lunch again tomorrow…but this time I think I will dress it after breakfast so it can soak a few hours. It definitely tasted better where there was more dressing–I find Kale bitter so tossing this a lot more than I did would also probably help.
Delicious (and easy to make) salad! We had it last night and my family loved it.
So refreshing, filling, and easy to make ahead! Loved it!
One of the best healthy dishes I have EVER tasted!
Absolutely LOVED this recipe! And my husband, who is just along for the ride, could not get over how delicious it was! AMAZING! Very satisfying and flavorful, yet super easy to make. We used canola instead of the peanut oil and added cashews and jalapeno for even more flavor! Definitely will be in our rotation of meals now… 🙂
Is there something I can substitute for the sesame oil? My son is severely allergic to sesame and I’d like to make this for him as well.
Any light oil should be fine- light olive, peanut, canola, sunflower, etc (depending on his allergies)
Such an awesome salad!!!!!
Thanks Mel!
We eat at Houston’s fairly regularly, and I usually order this salad with medium-rare grilled beef. It is fantastic with the peanut sauce! Totally worth a try. Thanks for posting this recipe!
This turned out fantastic- my always hungry teens loved it. I threw in some bread to keep them from starving. Will definitely make again. It’s too bad they’re no pre-washed and shredded kale. I used the pre-shredded cabbage AND carrots from Trader Joe’s and it sped it up a lot.
This is the best light dressing ever! I substituted EVOO for the peanut oil (didn’t have any on hand), and it’s absolutely delicious! Will make this again soon.
Could I make this a “warm salad” by just tossing over the stove top in a skillet? Thanks.
sure
This was lovely – even my kale-phobic husband commented that it was “very good”! 😉 Thanks.
This looks amazing! I am allergic to peanuts and peanut oil…what would be a good substitution for the oil? Thanks!!
Hi Lauren – you can try olive oil. Or any other type of nut oil.
How can this be Peanut Vinaigrette without peanuts? Just the peanut oil? Sounds good and will certainly be making this tonight!
Yes, peanut oil has a light nutty taste!
And the salad does have peanuts too!
Can you please please please try and duplicate the awesome Houston’s veggie burger? I’ve been told it’s oats, sweet potato, prunes and some other items with a soy glaze. It is so good!! Would love to see you create it! Thanks
Yes! My sister had made this home. I’ll ask her for the recipe.
Would love to know if you found the veggie burger recipe.
Can’t wait to try it.
Delicious (and easy to make) salad! We had it last night and my family loved it. They requested I put it in my “recipes to make again” category. Thank you for your great recipes, Gina:)
Awesome!
Yum! Can’t wait to make this. I used to love Houston’s when I lived in Maryland.
is there any sub for the peanut oil? can i use a little bit of pb or pb2 with some evoo? i don’t have peanut oil on hand but i literally have everything else and don’t want to run to the store tonight. this looks so good!!!
I think you could substitute olive oil for the peanut oil.